Suburban report.

Firms Just Say No To Die Cast Study

January 30, 2000|By Dave Barnes.

WOODSTOCK — Two planning firms opted out of an invitation to evaluate the former Die Cast factory site in Woodstock and recommend potential uses for it.

Cliff DiLorenzo, a planner with Trkla, Pettigrew, Allen & Payne Inc., and Gibbs Planning Group of Birmingham, Mich., were asked to evaluate a "laundry list" of potential uses for the site drafted by City Councilman Jim Young.

A preliminary plan for the site that featured residential and commercial uses around a children's museum was rejected by a 3-2 vote of the council last month, partly because of the residential element and Young's belief that other public possibilities should be explored. DiLorenzo and Gibbs Planning were invited to investigate the alternatives.

Citing a lack of time to conduct a meaningful study, the consulting firms declined the offer, prompting Young to try a different tack.

"I would like to pursue the idea of approaching this from the design side," Young told the City Council, suggesting that buildings be designed first and uses found later to fill them.